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I went to Dallas public schools (Oak Cliff area) along side Stevie Ray Vaughn and Stephen Tobolowsky (see: "Groundhog Day"). The DISD was steered by Dr. W. T. White. Back then, the child was going to be educated or they were going to find out the reason why.

The greatest influence on my desire to learn was my third grade teacher, Mrs. Goldsmith. She started every class with a delightful Bible story read from a big book she kept on her desk.

Mrs. Goldsmith was young and beautiful. I could have looked at her and listen to her all day. And her Bible story stayed with me all day.

Now the ACLU would want to hang Mrs. Goldsmith in front of all the 3rd graders....so sad.

I went to Dallas public schools (Oak Cliff area) along side Stevie Ray Vaughn and Stephen Tobolowsky (see: "Groundhog Day"). The DISD was steered by Dr. W. T. White. Back then, the child was going to be educated or they were going to find out the reason why.

The greatest influence on my desire to learn was my third grade teacher, Mrs. Goldsmith. She started every class with a delightful Bible story read from a big book she kept on her desk.

Mrs. Goldsmith was young and beautiful. I could have looked at her and listen to her all day. And her Bible story stayed with me all day.

Undies, so good to see you. Come back more often.

I understand your point. My favorite teacher was a handsome English teacher from Spain. All the girls thought he was the greytest and paid attention in his class. Of course, it was silly, as he was the dad of one of my friends. But he was a very good teacher.

‎" To the world you are just one more person, but to a rescued pet, you are the world."

The standards aren't too high here for either the students or the teachers. There's a teacher here who lives in my neighborhood with a masters. It figures she got it from a Florida school. She can't reason, talk, or write better than a 4th grader. To say she's dull is an overstatement. No wonder the students aren't doing well.

When a teacher or administrator is obviously not capable or has done something really wrong, they give them a job filing or some menial work AT FULL PAY. The system is a mess here.

I don't know much about Florida schools.

In Michigan, there is a huge difference between scores from wealthy or middle class suburban districts and poor urban or rural districts. There is also a big difference in the amount of school work and the expectations of parents and teachers in the more successful districts.

It's a huge drop from last year's scores. It's my understanding the test is on it's way out.

Florida in some areas has also started paying teachers by merits rather then senority...

I went to a private school, our scores on the "tests" always blew away the public schools..and our teachers made less money. The teachers were teachers because they wanted kids to learn...not just for a paycheck.

Teachers can have all the "merits" in the world and still know nothing. It's like St Louis Woman's example of the teacher with a masters degree.

One of the problems really is the teacher's union IMO. It serves its purpose in the sense that it helps teachers get paid enough. It's not fair to tell a teacher "You have to buy materials for your classroom, but we won't pay you squat." Some of the most caring people I know are either refusing to become teachers or to earn more degrees to stay teachers because of this very issue. It's not that they don't care, it's that they can't live broke.

OTOH, teachers unions have pushed for too many benefits. For example, many states have a rule that if you make it past three years, then you're practically untouchable. It's nearly impossible to get that teacher fired. It doesn't matter how crappy their teaching is, how many of their students are failing, etc. They're untouchable. It shouldn't be like that. Another problem I've seen is that if a teacher admits to not being able to come back for the rest of the year but refuses to quit/retire, then that position is not permanently filled by another permanent teacher. Many school districts can add on a substitute at a contract pay rate, but a lot of school systems don't get to do that. It's like "Are you going to come back tomorrow?" That's pretty bad.

So, I'd like to see teachers still get a decent amount of pay and I get offended at people who suggest they're not worth a dime, but honestly there are too many benefits that have been accumulated. I'd like to see some of those benefits go.

In Michigan, there is a huge difference between scores from wealthy or middle class suburban districts and poor urban or rural districts. There is also a big difference in the amount of school work and the expectations of parents and teachers in the more successful districts.

That's true too, and I don't think that's an accident.

Truth is students need the moral and academic support of their parents. When I volunteered in the school that had low scores, I found that the most successful students had involved parents. If the parent has the attitude of "School didn't do much for me, why should I encourage my child?," then the teacher is pretty much in for an uphill battle.

There have also been cases where the parents morally supported their children, but really didn't have the academic ability to help them with their homework. I've learned that there are actually quite a few adults who either can't read or can't read well. I think if we had more programs assisting adults with learning how to read, then you'd see the scores of their children go up.